by Zoey Woods
“It’s okay.” Patrick took my hand in his. “Together we’ll figure this out and help you.”
“Thanks.” I met the stare of the bleeding man on the floor. “Is what you said, true? That every time I use the scythe, I chip away a piece of my soul?”
“Fuck you, Finn!” Patrick dropped my hand and lunged for him.
I placed a hand on Patrick’s shoulder, pausing him. “No, it’s okay. I’m glad he told me. Cause now I know what to do to give this job to someone else.”
“It’s not that easy.” Patrick raked a hand through his hair. “You can’t just give it up and not expect dire consequences. The whole fabric of time, space, and life could unravel. There has to be a balance even here in the underworld.”
I lifted my chin to Finn who pulled a shard of glass out of his cheek. “According to him, I don’t have much of a choice. My future looks pretty bleak no matter which path I go down. So I’m setting my own rules and the first victims I’m slaying will be those who sent me here.”
“No, no, no.” Patrick shook his head. “Bad idea. If you reap souls that aren’t ready for death…if it’s not their time…you could lose everything. You’d be expelled as a grim reaper.”
“Can’t see the downside to that, sorry.” I shrugged.
Finn laughed. “A woman as a reaper is a mistake, brother. Case in point.”
“Fuck you.” I stomped over to him. “Maybe I should let Patrick try and choke you again. Even if you can’t die, can you withstand one of death’s scythe’s?”
At my words, the large weapon jerked out of my arm and into my hands. I stumbled forward. The edge of the blade scraped along the tile.
Finn paled for a split second before he schooled his face. “Careful with that love, you might reap your lovely foot off, then how will you chase after the bad souls?”
“I don’t need to chase them, I know exactly where two of them are.” I leveled the weapon. It’s weight shifting like it was adjusting to my strength the longer I held it.
“Hope you don’t me us, love.” Finn glanced behind me to Patrick. “Cause the world without present and future would be a sad thing to behold.”
“Oh, I don’t know.” I smacked the wooden handle against my palm. “I’m sure lots of people would love to kill the Fates and be able to run their own lives.”
“It would be chaos,” Patrick said behind me. “More people would kill each other as the world spun into darkness.”
I wasn’t so sure. But I wasn’t here to end Patrick or Finn. My first victims were going to be David Starr and the bartender that worked for him. I was willing to bet that more of his bar’s employees had a hand in my death as well.
“No, I won’t end either of you right now.” I closed my eyes, imaging the scythe back on my arm as a tattoo. Thinking of how Patrick made me feel peace and safety. I opened my eyes, grinning that I’d done it.
Finn caught my stare and winked, then wiped the blood off the side of his face. Yes, Patrick was like a rock and steady. While Finn made me feel wild and unsure about everything.
“You can’t go after your murder alone.” Patrick frowned, stepping up beside me. “I’ll go with you.”
“While I appreciate that,” I touched his arm and a warm tingle raced through me, “I don’t want anyone else getting hurt because of me.”
“Nothing you can say will change my mind.” His jaw set and a muscle pulsed along the base that had me yearning to kiss it to ease his worry.
“You two are going to get yourselves killed,” Finn said in a disgusted voice. “Good luck. I’ll be here enjoying my own entertainment and how pissed Dave’s gonna be when he finds out you two are going on some side mission when she should be reaping the souls of whose thread I cut.”
“Guess you can’t have everything you want,” I said.
Chapter 7
Outside, Patrick and I hiked up the path toward the bar. There hadn’t been anyone there when I had awoken in this undead place, but that didn’t mean anything. If I was a reaper of souls, there had to be a way to access the world of the living and with Patrick helping me, I was certain he’d explain everything to me.
“So,” I started, “are you happy being one of the fates?”
He gave me a sideways glance. “I’ve got it better than either of my brothers.”
“How so?” I was fascinated by this world even if I didn’t understand all the rules of this place. It was eerie walking around to what looked like a barren, empty world.
“Well, Dave can only see the past and it infuriates him, because he can’t do anything to stop what’s happened. It’s already set.”
“And Finn?” My cheeks burned, thinking about our hot and heavy kiss earlier. I licked the inside of my lip. The three tiny bumps were still there. Could he sense my emotions and now I was getting turned on even now?
“He has the opposite problem.” He moved a tree branch out of my way. “The future is never set. It’s ever-flowing, ever-changing. Every decision makes waves in a pond.”
“That has to suck. No wonder Finn seems to be in such a bad mood.”
Patrick laughed. “You caught him on a good day too.”
“God, hate to be on his bad side on a rotten day.” We strolled past a strip club with posters of scantily clad women all over the outside of the place. Their boobs nearly falling out of their costumes or nipples poking through the sheer fabric.
There was no reaction from Patrick whatsoever. Maybe I’d misread his interest in me. “Nothing you see that you like?”
He took my hand and my breath hitched. “Only right here, right now. Besides, I’m more of a leg man.”
My entire body heated at his words. I was five-foot-eight and mostly legs with barely B-cup breasts that always made me self-conscious. I’d even stuffed my bra all through high school to make up for it.
We made our way to the bar and it stood empty, just like before.
“Now what?” I asked.
“We move at a different speed than humans.”
I cocked my head to the side, willing him to continue.
“Mortals move so much slower than us. Which is how you’re able to reap a soul.” He kept his hand in mine and I found I didn’t want to let go. “If we moved at the same speed, how would you reap a soul in a car crash, for example?”
“No idea, but what you’re saying makes sense.” I nodded. “And that’s why I don’t see anyone around?”
“Exactly.” He squeezed my hand, then let go. “Still your mind. Imagine every inhale and exhale getting slower and slower. Your heartbeat taking longer between each beat.”
“I don’t have a heartbeat, I’m dead, remember?”
“Not exactly. You’re a death deity. Your spiritual body is more substance and tangible than a human’s.”
“Bummer, you mean I can’t walk through walls.”
“Yeah.” He gave me a sheepish look. “But it comes with other perks.”
“Such as?”
“You’re harder to kill the second time around.”
I rubbed my arms. “Not against those shadow things.” My tattoo itched along my forearm. “Am I protected now? With the scythe?”
“I won’t lie to you,” he opened the door to the bar and we slipped inside, “the shadows might be deterred from your weapon, but until you’re stronger and can wield it better, they will be a threat to you.”
“Not sure if I like the truth.” I hiked myself up on a barstool. “This might have been one of those times where a little bit of untruth would’ve gone a long way.”
He leaned against the bar next to me. “Would you rather be prepared or not?”
“Fine.” I sighed, pressing my hands to my thighs. Part of me dreaded learning how to reap a soul. It didn’t matter that Finn had the person’s life thread or whatever, it still felt like I would be killing someone.
“Hey, what’s wrong?”
Patrick’s words about finding my killers flashed in my mind. I wouldn’t be hurting any in
nocents, I’d be bringing justice to my murderers. “Nothing. Let’s do this.”
“Okay. Close your eyes and concentrate like I told you.”
I did as he suggested, focusing on my breathing and what would have been my heartbeat if I was alive. Pain spiked in my head and I snapped my eyes open. “Fuck!”
“That’s not the way to relax.”
“Well, neither is a sudden migraine,” I snapped back.
“You’re way too tense.” He moved in front of me, clasping my shoulders and massaging them.
His masculine scent filled each rapid breath I took. My focus moved to his mouth and I couldn’t look away. Didn’t want to. I wanted to feel his lips on mine. Taste him.
As though reading my mind, his hands moved from my shoulders to either side of my face, cupping my cheeks. He lightly brushed his lips across mine. A shiver raced through me and I gripped his T-shirt.
The kiss grew deeper, hungrier. Burning me in all the right ways. I wrapped my legs around his waist and he pressed into me. His erection pulsing against my heat. I nibbled at his lower lip when his fingers skimmed the underside of my breast.
“I thought you were a leg man,” I teased.
He brushed his thumb over my nipple and jolt of pleasure shot through me. “I am.”
His husky voice had my breasts suddenly feeling hot and heavy and yearning for more of his touch.
“Doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate yours fully,” his sultry voice made my panties feel damp. “Or the rest of your beautiful self. Everything about you drives me wild.”
I leaned back as he massaged my breast, his lips nuzzling the side of my neck. Yearning filled me everywhere he touched me and even the places he didn’t. My hips rocked back and forth against him. Needing more. Wanting more.
“I could breathe you in,” he said.
And I wanted him to. Lust rippled through my body, threatening to overtake me. My heart thudded in my chest at his tongue swirling patterns along my neck that had me writhing against him. It was so freaking hot in here I wanted to strip out of my clothes and his.
Chapter 8
I tightened my legs around his hips, kissing his neck, moaning as he rubbed a nipple through my clothes. My breaths quickly turned into pants. His kisses fueled a fire in me and I wanted him now. Wanted to taste and feel all of him.
A brush of air tickled along the back of my neck. I groaned, not wanting the distraction. I’d rather keep kissing Patrick.
His chuckle against my lips made me frown.
“What?” I asked.
“Look around,” he whispered. “But no sudden reactions or we’ll have to start over.”
Not knowing what the hell he was talking about, I opened my eyes. My gasp escaped before I could stop it. All around us blurry images of people moved. My face flaming from making out with Patrick, I untangled my legs from around his waist and smoothed a hand down my hair.
“Now, slow your breathing like we talked about and they’ll come into focus more.”
“Can they see us?” I hissed, mortified of nearly ripping his clothes off while dozens of people witnessed us.
“Not yet.”
Relief filled me. Thank goodness for small favors. Not that I was against public displays of affection, but I didn’t want people gawking at me while I dry humped a guy either.
I rolled my shoulders back. Told myself to relax and the blurry images gradually took shape. A dozen people filled the bar, so my guess was it was early evening. Music blared from the jukebox and a couple was dancing together.
“How is it nearly nighttime?” I asked Patrick. “It was early morning when we came here.”
“We move at a faster speed than humans, remember?”
“Right.” I nodded. “So at midnight in human time, it’ll be how many days since I was…killed?”
“Two.”
I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat. “What now?”
“Do you recognize anyone here from that night?”
A chill raced down my spine as I glanced around, trying to appear nonchalant. Emily, the bartender who had told me David Starr’s name wasn’t around that I could tell. I didn’t know if I was relieved or agitated. She could work a later shift though. “No, not yet.”
“You can speed up time, for a few hours, just focus on something like a clock with the hands speeding. A cell phone with the time jumping or even someone’s food or drink suddenly gone.”
“Okay.” I rubbed my hands together, searching for something. A full bowl of peanuts sat in a bowl on the bar. Perfect. I stared at them, imaging them down by half. They seemed to vibrate for a moment, then, poof the bowl was nearly empty.
My head throbbed and I rubbed my temples. “How did I do?”
“Good. It’s ten at night now.”
“Will I always get headaches doing this?” I scowled. Whoever said all the pain goes away in the afterlife didn’t know what the hell they were talking about.
“You’ve got to adjust to using your powers. The headaches will go away once you master the skills.”
“Sure wish there was a crash course then, cause this isn’t fun.”
He squeezed my shoulder and gave me a sympathetic look. “Hey, you figured out how to jump time, some reapers take weeks to do that.”
“Guess I’m a quick learner.”
Emily, the bartender, leaned over the bar, asking the couple next to me for their drink order and I froze.
I spun around on the barstool, grasping Patrick’s hand. My heart throbbed in my throat. “It’s her. What do I do? What if she recognizes me?”
“She won’t.”
“How do you know that?” I whispered. “She freaking stabbed me two nights ago.”
“Because,” he brought my hand up to his mouth and kissed my knuckles, “your soul, as a reaper, looks a little different from your human body. At most, she’ll think you look familiar.”
Did I look different? Now I wanted to see what he was talking about. “Do you have a mirror? Or can I even see my reflection?”
His chuckle made a woman nearby give him an appreciative glance. “Yes, you’re not a vampire.”
“Wait.” I paused, lowering my voice. “Are there such things as vampires?”
“There are demons that feast on blood. Some can possess a human and make them crave blood as well.” He shook his head. “But those are rare.”
I relaxed a bit, leaning against the edge of the bar.
“What will you have, luv?” the bartender asked.
Since I’d entered a crazy, paranormal world, might as well enjoy a drink. “A silver bullet, please.”
“You got it.” She winked and I nearly threw-up in my mouth.
How could she be so calm and not even flinch when she saw me? Sure, Patrick said I looked different, but I couldn’t be that much so, could I? The bartender smiled and grabbed the next order as a wave of new people entered. It was prime drinking time.
“Hold my spot for me?” I asked Patrick.
He nodded and I slid off the barstool. I had to see what all these humans saw when they looked at me. Would I be taller or shorter? I didn’t feel any different—well, except the being dead part.
What if I looked hideous? Some skeletal monster like I’d always pictured the grim reaper looking like.
I weaved through the crowd to the bathrooms and paused outside the door. It was here that I’d been taken.
I pushed past the fear clawing in my chest. The fluorescent light over the bathroom mirror flickered as I approached. My breaths felt like I had inhaled glass shards. Time to get this over with. I marched to the mirror, stealing myself for what I’d find.
For a long time, I stared at the image looking back. It was me but not me. My dark hair was now purple! And shiny like I’d had some kind of professional glossy highlights added. Gone was the beautiful golden skin tone I’d gotten from my Hispanic heritage. I was super pale—almost goth-looking. My eyes were bright. Other than all of that, I was still me.
Okay. Time to down my drink before I sank my scythe into one of my murderers.
Chapter 9
Back at the bar, I slid up beside Patrick and tossed down the silver bullet I ordered. The aftertaste of the gin and scotch mixture burning down my throat.
“God,” I wince. “I thought being undead would come with at least a perk of being able to enjoy alcohol.”
“You don’t have your human body anymore.” He gave me a crooked smile. “Your soul hasn’t ever had a drink…directly before.”
I swallowed, the fire slowly fading. “Next time warn me ahead of time.”
“Hard to remember sometimes, I live in the now. Dave is the one of us who could give you the rundown on all the past reapers and the list of things to know.”
“When do I meet this other Fate cousin of yours?” Hopefully, he was like Patrick and not like Finn. Desire rippled through me just thinking of him. Here I was attracted to the brute and Patrick as well. Was this because I was undead? Had my previous inhibitions been swept away too? I was a date-one-guy-at a time gal before. Now I was thinking and wanting two guys. I shook my head. Never would have believed it if someone told me I’d be attracted to two men at the same time.
And they were so different. Patrick was like the boy-next-door romance. Safe. Secure. Comforting and a great kisser. While Finn…was sexy and dangerous. Like soaring on a zip-line across the grand canyon not knowing if any second I’d fall to my death. I chuckled. Well, I was already dead. And in some ways, Finn was similar to David Starr. Both men were lethal and I couldn’t let myself get swept away like I had with David.
The bartender was laughing at whatever some guy said and gave him a high-five. Was he one of the ones who stabbed me?
“How do I reap someone?” I asked Patrick in a low voice as I pretended to kiss his cheek.
“Hard to do in such a public place like this.”
“How do you mean?” I frowned, pulling back to look at his blank expression. “People die in crowds all the time.”
“Sure.” He shrugged. “After you’ve done forty or fifty slayings, slicing someone’s life thread even as their entire family watches and doesn’t see you will be easy. But this is your first time.”